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Mine was delivered yesterday. I have the collar built and stained. Planning on three taps right now. :)

Well, I have seen this post lingering unanswered so I decided to open a couple of bottles my Dad gave me for New Years. The first bottle was their Apple Cyser. I was very suprised. It is almost a semisweet white with a hint of apple and little to no honey. Having said that, I did enjoy it...

Definitely break the cap with a sanitized punch. I open ferment for the first couple of days (until 1/3 sugar break) and then airlock. Good luck and let us know how it goes.

Hey Cheesefood, I will try and answer your questions and keep this as short as possible. First off, great choice on honey (my favorite). If you want a semi-sweet mel you should aim for four gallons (3 gallons water with your 1 gallon honey). This will give you a OG of about 1.11 . . ...

My favorites in order: Blackberry Orange Blossom Tupelo (very nice, very pricey) Buckwheat (mix it with another varietal) Clover Wildflower Both Blackberry and Orangeblossom are great for traditional or melomels. I used the blackberry for a blueberry, a blackberry and a cherry melomel. Note...

As long as you don't want bubbles you can campden/sorbate it and then give it a honey/water mixture to backsweeten. You might be suprised how well this works. Like anything else, I would take a sample and add a little bit of honey (dissolved) to your glass until you get to the sweetness level...

The reason that your cider hasn't cleared is partially because of the wheat malt. The other part is that you boiled some of the cider thus setting the pectin. This pectin haze will not go away unless you use some pectic enzyme to break it down. You might also consider using some hot...

Apple Cider is fine. In the US apple juice and cider are the same thing. In Europe Cider refers to what we call "hard cider" (i.e. the stuff we are making). But, a long answer to a short question, cider is fine as long as it has no preservatives.

First off, congratulations, you are making mead (and yes, if you add fruit it is a melomel). Unless you like really dry wines you made a good choice getting the extra honey. Without knowing the type of yeast that they used in the kit it is impossible to give you specifics but here are some...

Ok, I took a look at the recipe and while I wouldn't say I disagree with everything in the recipe, there is a lot that is not nescessary. First off, dump the molases (especially in primary, I find it gave an odd mineral flavor when fermented). Second, there is no real difference in brown sugar...

I think adding your juice to secondary will give you more of the flavor you are looking for. I tried fermenting some POM mixed 50/50 with apple. The only thing left from the POM that I could taste was the acidic tartness. Not nescessarily a bad thing but by itself not enjoyable. I like your...

If you make the quick recipe then you can definitely get by without nutrient. It was intended to be simple. Otherwise I would add a little yeast nutrient. Will it work without it . . . yes. Would it ferment better with . . . yes. Even though the blueberries have nutrient value, I have found...

I have made the recipe above. In two months (give or take a week or two) you have a very drinkable mead. Not a great one but a decent one. However, I would cut the honey back some. It comes out very sweet. I would use no more than 3 lbs (and I like them sweet). I also have made a more...

You can sweeten with lactose (I would dissolve it first in some boiling water) or add splenda (shudder) for sweetness. Another option would be Stevia (found at your local health food store) in liquid form. It is a natural super sweet sugar substitute (say that 10 times fast). But, if you are...

Another place to find lactose is at your local whole foods (or other health foods store). I would also recommend dissolving it in a little boiling water (or warmed AJ) to help incorporate. It can sometimes clump up a little (like malt). Good luck.

I tend to use a mixture of DAP and Fermaid-K (which is a nutrient mix). I definitely use them in my mead and I have started rehydrating with GO-Ferm as well. Does it make a difference? I seem to have quicker and stronger ferments when using all of the above. I am not 100% sold on the Go-Ferm...

I was about to chime in with the "yeah, mine smells like that sometimes" encouragement until I read the last word "vinegary". Nothing spells doom for cider like acetobacter (i.e. the stuff that makes vinegar). Now, it may not be infected in which case all will be great. None the less, bottle...

Yep. If history were to repeat itself that would be true. As for what I have read, most cider was traditionally still as it was made in the fall and consumed in the spring. However, there are examples of carbonated cider and apple jack that I have read about but they are European in origin.

Odin is right. The BATF considers freezing a form of fractal distallation (i.e. the same as if you distilled it). There is an exception in that you are allowed to reduce it (i.e. freeze) as long as no more than .5% (yes 1/2 percent) of the total volume or less is removed (which would be...

Sure, Mead is actually pretty straight forward. Here is a simplre recipe and some simple directions. The only thing you have to decide is if you want it sweet, semi-sweet or dry. Raspberry Melomel (15 Gallons) 55 lbs honey (I happen to like blackberry honey) 30 lbs Red Raspberry's (split...